Lignin-based microporous carbon is prepared by KOH activation method. Nitrogen sorption analysis shows that the specific surface area is 1473 m2 g−1 and the micropore size is mainly distributed at 0.65 nm, leading to a capacitance value of 252 F g−1 in H2SO4 electrolyte. To tune the microstructure for better electrochemical performance, cobalt acetate is introduced in the mixture of lignin/KOH. The catalysis of cobalt acetate reduces the heteroatom content of the final porous carbon, resulting in an increased graphitization degree. Moreover, the microporous structure is also tuned by generating more submicropores with pore size of 0.65–0.85 nm. Even though the specific surface area is only 1543 m2 g−1, the submicropore surface area is increased to 1097 from 662 m2 g−1. With the increased graphitization degree and submicropore content, the prepared porous carbon can accommodate more electrolyte ions, contributing to a specific capacitance of 332 F g−1 in H2SO4 electrolyte. This capacitance value is increased by 31.7 % compared with previous carbon without adding cobalt acetate. The assembled supercapacitor cell can deliver a high energy density of 13.4 Wh kg−1. Our findings provide a guide on the microstructure modulation of porous carbon to match aqueous electrolytes with different ionic size.
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